ABC Moves Forward With ‘Dancing With the Stars’ Premiere After Considering Delay
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With a tentative deal reached between writers and the studios and streamers, ABC has decided to move forward with its premiere of the 32nd season of Dancing With the Stars.
As of late last week, ABC was considering delaying the return of the veteran reality dance competition after strikers picketed outside the show’s rehearsal spaces and one of the show’s contestants, Matt Walsh (Veep), said he would “pause” his involvement with the series.
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On Monday, ABC announced the show will return as scheduled on Tuesday at 8 p.m. (with Walsh included), with the season also airing live on Disney+ and being made available the next day on Hulu.
On Sunday, the Writers Guild of America announced it had reached a tentative deal with the studios on a new contract that would resolve the historic 146-day strike. The deal still needs to be ratified by WGA members to take effect. The WGA has suspended picketing, though no one is yet allowed to return to work until the union gives the all clear that the strike is officially over.
Though it’s an unscripted show, Dancing With the Stars is a signatory to the Writers Guild’s minimum basic agreement and has in the past employed a WGA writer among its staff of 500 people to script certain comments for the hosts.
Striking writers have picketed outside the show’s rehearsal spaces this week, with some carrying signs specifically calling out Walsh, who is a WGA member, and actresses Alyson Hannigan and Mira Sorvino, who are arguably the highest profile SAG-AFTRA members in the season 32 cast.
Rick Porter contributed to this report.
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